Slapstick
by Pinole
Summary: KO learns about another teen hero who used to work at the Bodega, but is he really gone?


KO was going through some back stock in the bodega storeroom one afternoon when some things fell from a shelf behind him. "Oops. Better pick that…up?"

KO picked up a framed photograph and a yellow burlap sack. There didn't seem to be anything special about the Sack, but the photograph piqued his interest. It was a photo of a younger Enid and Rad with a third boy. The boy wore a standard bodega uniform and a wide brimmed, purple hat, with mismatched purple and yellow gloves and boots. "That's weird. I've never seen this guy. Seems like Enid and Rad know him though…"

KO put the bag back on the shelf and left the back room with the photo, bringing it to the front with him. It's not a very busy day at Gar's Bodega, probably due to the abysmal weather outside, so Enid was sitting at the front counter with literally no one there when KO approached her. "Hey Enid? Who's this?" KO said holding up the photo.

Enid, only half paying attention, turned to see the photo…and immediately turned pale. "Uh…well, that's me, um and Rad from about a year before you started here KO…"

"Ok, who's the third guy?"

"Slapstick…We, uh, try not to talk about him when Rad's around…look I'll tell you more, but you have to give me that photo and wait until Rad's shift ends."

"Um…Ok." KO hands the photo to Enid and gets back to work. However, during his break he uses his Phone to see what he could find about any Hero named Slapstick…

After Rad left the Bodega for the day, KO came back up front to the counter.

"What did you find out?" Enid asked, not even looking up from her register.

"Huh?"

"KO I know that you got curious and googled slapstick's name during your break, now what did you find out."

"Ok, uh…He was a hero who used to work at the Bodega and one of Mr. Gar's first hero apprentices; he had a "Magic Satchel" that he could pull any tool or weapon out of so long as he didn't use them to try and kill anyone. According to HeroWiki his POW level was 5 and he was supposedly the first Hero to get Cosma to laugh…other than that, well he seems to have dropped off the face of the Earth about 2 years ago."

"Well. He didn't fall off the planet."

"Well that's good."

"He died."

"That's less good."

"Slapstick was at Gar's around the same time that me and Rad started working here. He was…Well, he was a great guy…"

We are now seeing scenes from the past as Enid narrates. There is a battle going on between Rad, Enid and what appears to be an early model of the Big Darrel. It is going poorly for the two heroes.

"It happened when Boxman unveiled his 'Darrel XL' robot. Gar was away at a hero convention and your mom hadn't started working in the Dojo yet so we didn't really have anybody strong enough to beat it. It looked like Boxman was finally going to win."

Rad is cornered by the Darrel XL. It goes to attack when out of nowhere a massive Mallet comes crashing down on its head.

"Then Slapstick showed up, stupid grin on his face as always." Slapstick helps Rad up and the two, along with Enid, begin attacking the robot in unison. "The three of us were beating him, so Darrel decided to use his most dangerous weapon." The Chest of Darrel XL opens up revealing a glowing orb of some kind. "A glorb Bomb that had enough power to level the entire plaza."

Slapstick stops smiling as he shoves Enid and Rad away in a panic. "Don't worry guys!" Slapstick jumps at Darrel XL "I got this in the bag!" There is a blinding light and both Darrel XL and Slapstick are gone.

"We still don't know how, but Slapstick managed to contain the entire explosion…and it cost him his life." It cuts to a still of a funeral for Slapstick. "Slapstick's death really hit Rad hard. He and Slapstick were really close."

"How close?"

"As close as you can be while still only being friends. Anyway, Rad nearly quit because he thought it was his fault and Gar had to talk him out of it." Enid waves one hand in the air. "But even talking about Slap puts Rad in serious funk for weeks so we don't bring him up to Rad. Why don't you put the photo back where you found it."

After hours in the bodega, blue mist begins rising out of the bag KO found. Frost covers the glass in the picture frame as a haunting echoing voice rings out… "Tuo em tel…TUO EM TEL!"


End file.
